Officially, the first (and, thus far, at least, only) item on the government agenda for the House of Commons today is the budget debate, which officially got underway just before the Chamber shut down for an extended two-week recess, and expected to continue when regular parliamentary programming resumes later this morning.

The Conservatives, however, are hoping to shift the spotlight back to the opposition motion that they brought forward just before the break, which targets the government’s move to require that groups applying for Canada Summer Jobs funding sign off on an attestation confirming that both the putative summer job and the “core mandate” of the organization are in full support with Charter rights, including reproductive choice.

If adopted — which it almost certainly will not be — the motion would would have the House go on the record with the view that “organizations that engage in non-political non-activist work, such as feeding the homeless, helping refugees, and giving kids an opportunity to go to camp, should be able to access Canada Summer Jobs funding regardless of their private convictions and regardless of whether or not they choose to sign the application attestation.”

The motion is slated for a vote later this afternoon, and while both the Liberals and the New Democrats are expected to oppose it, the Conservatives aren’t prepared to let it go down to a quiet defeat — they’re dispatching MPs Garnett Genuis and Steven Blaney to the House Foyer later this morning to “answer questions on the Trudeau values test.”

Also on the House to-do list today: the opening round of debate on the late Sen. Tobias Enverga’s bid to recognize October as Latin American Heritage Month, which was adopted by the Senate before his death last fall, and is being sponsored in the House by Conservative MP Peter Kent.

ON & AROUND THE HILL

The unions representing the Parliament Hill security teams hit the stage at the Centre Block press theatre to launch what they’re describing as the first-ever “joint campaign to express their concerns and frustrations” over the current state of labour relations with the Parliamentary Protective Service, which, as per the advisory, they believe are at a “historic low” since 2015, when Hill security was put under the “operational command” of the RCMP.

Also on the media circuit today: Mental Health Research Canada CEO Andrea Swinton outlines the mandate and purpose of the newly created organization, which, the notice states, “evolved from the Ontario Mental Health Foundation,” and is now launching as a national group.

OUTSIDE THE PRECINCT

Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains teams up with his Ontario counterpart Reza Moridi and Quebec deputy premier Dominique Anglade to unveil new federal-provincial investment in 5G technology, a “revolutionary project” that, as per the advisory, “aims to make Canada a top destination for businesses seeking to grow quickly, invest, create jobs and expand.”

Meanwhile, Transport Minister Marc Garneau drops by VIA Rail’s Etobicoke maintenance centre to deliver what is being billed as an “important announcement” on the company’s Quebec-WIndsor corridor fleet.

Finally, Finance Minister Bill Morneau kicks off two days of closed-door conversations with his G20 counterparts in Buenos Aires.